Museo Franz Mayer

Franz Mayer arrived from Mannheim in 1905, made a fortune in finance, and spent fifty years assembling Mexico's finest collection of decorative arts - then left it to the nation with the means to house it. Since 1986 it has filled the former Hospital de San Juan de Dios, a sixteenth-century cloister facing the Alameda whose arcaded courtyard, fountain and herb garden are reason enough to visit. The galleries upstairs run deep in New Spanish craftsmanship: talavera poblana by the case, colonial silver and gold work, inlaid furniture, feather paintings, rebozos and religious sculpture, alongside one of the world's notable collections of editions of Don Quixote. The museum has doubled as the city's design hub, hosting the World Press Photo exhibition each year and strong rotating shows of contemporary design, photography and craft. The cloister cafe, quiet behind thick stone, is a centro secret worth protecting - order coffee and let the fountain do the talking.

What you actually see

• The cloister - the 16th-century arcaded courtyard and garden.
• Talavera and silver - New Spain's decorative arts in depth.
• The Quixote room - centuries of editions of Cervantes.
• Design exhibitions - World Press Photo and contemporary shows.

When to go

Any day but Monday; the World Press Photo season draws the year's biggest queues. Late morning gives courtyard light and lunch at the cafe.

Honest expectations

Decorative arts reward slow looking - visitors expecting murals and archaeology may find it sedate. Temporary shows sometimes claim the best galleries. The surrounding Hidalgo sidewalks are busy and scrappy; inside is another century.

Nearby

The Alameda across the avenue, the Mural Diego Rivera museum at the park's corner and Bellas Artes five minutes east.